Inside The Huskies

Sebastian Valdez Flexes Muscles in NFL Exhibition Debut

The former Husky defensive tackle made a good impression in the San Francisco 49ers' preseason opener.
Dan Raley|
Sebastian Valdez was a 13-game starter for the UW in 2024.
Sebastian Valdez was a 13-game starter for the UW in 2024. | Skylar Lin Visuals

Not much went right for the San Francisco 49ers in their exhibition opener, a 30-9 loss to the Denver Broncos.. However, Sebastian Valdez was a notable exception, putting his exemplary strength to good use.

The former University of Washington defensive tackle -- notable for his 405-pound bench presses in Montlake and nicknamed "The Hulk" in the Bay Area -- produced an encouraging NFL rookie preseason debut.

An undrafted free agent, the 6-foot-3, 302-pound Valdez finished with 4 tackles, including a tackle for loss and a half sack.

This made him much more productive than the two defensive tackles were were recently drafted by the 49ers, second-rounder Alfred Collins from Texas and fourth-round selection CJ West from Kent State, who didn't register any game stats.

After the game, Valdez found himself surrounded by TV cameras while he was shirtless, to the point a 49ers public-relations staffer urged the overly muscular player to put something on for modesty reasons.

Sebastian Valdez was a Husky Pro Day standout.
Sebastian Valdez was a Husky Pro Day standout. | Dan Raley

The former Husky seemed to bask in the attention coming his way and maintains a positive outlook as he tries to make the San Francisco 53-man roster.

"There's always some doubt, there's always some feelings of being overwhelmed, but there was never a feeling of I don't belong here," he told the reporters. "I know that I can overcome anything that comes to me. I know that I'm an NFL player at heart."

A one-year Husky, Valdez started all 13 games for Jedd Fisch's first UW team after transferring from Montana State. He finished with 49 tackles, including sacks against Eastern Michigan and UCLA.

He went undrafted presumably because he's considered a little undersized for his position, especially in comparison to his fellow 49ers rookies in the 6-foot-6, 333-pound Collins and the 6-foot-1, 316-pound West.

Yet Valdez has made Kyle Shanahan's coaching staff take notice of him during practice.

"He's been flashing a lot in practice," Shanahan said. "He's been a problem in one-on-ones and it looked like he played the run real well [Saturday]. When our O-line coach talks about him in practice, that means he's doing some stuff. It was good to see him carry it over to the game."

Sebastian Valdez, left. and Zach Durfee were a formidable UW pair in the short amount of time they played together.
Sebastian Valdez, left, and Zach Durfee were a formidable UW pair in the short amount of time they played together. | Skylar Lin Visuals

Valdez, who's from Southern California, could have signed on with any NFL team, but picked the 49ers because the franchise and its defense seemed to suit him.

"I think the scheme fits me the best," he said in the game aftermath. "The 49ers are known to be very dominant up front. When you look at tape from the past, you say you want to be part of that team."

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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